Best bookstore (single location)

Why? The bricks-and-mortar options for Capital Region book lovers got a little thinner last year. Two Borders locations closed in 2011 as their parent company struggled ¬ including the Borders in Clifton Park, which was last year’s third-place finisher. The region also lost an independent, the Friar Tuck Bookshop in Delmar. Though a few commenters swore they are now doing all their book shopping online, others vowed to spread their biblio love among the area’s remaining options. Of those, the Barnes and Noble at Colonie Center is the biggest, flashiest option, featuring more than 34,000 square feet of space and a café.

The warm and inviting Book House of Stuyvesant Plaza won’t serve you coffee but offers up the quintessential independent bookstore experience. The Barnes and Noble at Mohawk Commons? It’s the Mini-Me to the Colonie Center location.